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dougfreed
Guest
What is Baptism?
What does it mean to you?
What does it mean to you?
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imroc
Guest
I’ll quote “Reformed’s” quote of sacred scripture:
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Join Date: August 12, 2008
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http://forums.catholic-questions.org/images/icons/icon7.gif I will sprinkle clean water on you!
Ezekiel 36:25-27
I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.
What is Baptism: a sacrament
What does it mean to me: Sacraments are outward signs of inward grace, instituted by Christ for our sanctification (Catechismus concil. Trident., n. 4, ex S. Aug. “De Catechizandis rudibus”).
Sorry to quote others, but I feel I’d save some time during my lunch by using them to express my belief. If you’d like to talk about it sometime though, just email me
gotta get back to work!
God Bless you!
Reformed http://forums.catholic-questions.org/images/statusicon_cad/user_online.gif vbmenu_register(“postmenu_4192505”, true);
Senior Member
Join Date: August 12, 2008
Location: Pacific Northwest
Posts: 768
http://forums.catholic-questions.org/images/icons/icon7.gif I will sprinkle clean water on you!
Ezekiel 36:25-27
I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.
What is Baptism: a sacrament
What does it mean to me: Sacraments are outward signs of inward grace, instituted by Christ for our sanctification (Catechismus concil. Trident., n. 4, ex S. Aug. “De Catechizandis rudibus”).
Sorry to quote others, but I feel I’d save some time during my lunch by using them to express my belief. If you’d like to talk about it sometime though, just email me
gotta get back to work!
God Bless you!
T
TriuneUnity
Guest
From the Small Catechism:
What is Baptism?–Answer.
Baptism is not simple water only, but it is the water comprehended in God’s command and connected with God’s Word.
Which is that word of God?–Answer.
Christ, our Lord, says in the last chapter of Matthew: Go ye into all the world and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
What does Baptism give or profit?–Answer.
It works forgiveness of sins, delivers from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believe this, as the words and promises of God declare.
Which are such words and promises of God?–Answer.
Christ, our Lord, says in the last chapter of Mark: He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
How can water do such great things?–Answer.
It is not the water indeed that does them, but the word of God which is in and with the water, and faith, which trusts such word of God in the water. For without the word of God the water is simple water and no baptism. But with the word of God it is a baptism, that is, a gracious water of life and a washing of regeneration in the Holy Ghost, as St. Paul says, Titus, chapter three: By the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost, which He shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ, our Savior, that, being justified by His grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. This is a faithful saying.
What does such baptizing with water signify?–Answer.
It signifies that the old Adam in us should, by daily contrition and repentance, be drowned and die with all sins and evil lusts, and, again, a new man daily come forth and arise; who shall live before God in righteousness and purity forever.
Where is this written?–Answer.
St. Paul says Romans, chapter 6: We are buried with Christ by Baptism into death, that, like as He was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
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imroc
Guest
may i also add 1 Peter 3:20-22
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Ruthie
Guest
I was baptized by my Grandfather, a Congregational minister, with the Trinitarian formula.
I believe that it was the graces conferred by that baptism that caused me to come to Christ and to the Catholic church. There is nothing in my upbringing - except maybe my Grandma - to cause me to be open to real Christianity. I was raised Unitarian, feminist, liberal, and lived the hippy lifestyle.
Hope this is the kind of answer you were looking for!
Ruthie
I believe that it was the graces conferred by that baptism that caused me to come to Christ and to the Catholic church. There is nothing in my upbringing - except maybe my Grandma - to cause me to be open to real Christianity. I was raised Unitarian, feminist, liberal, and lived the hippy lifestyle.
Hope this is the kind of answer you were looking for!
Ruthie
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Publisher
Guest
“One of the crucial testimonies of Friends is that the grace of God can be received directly by any person without the need for any human intermediary such as priest or pastor. Friends believe that Jesus Christ baptizes his followers directly with the Holy Spirit. Friends also believe that it is important to live in daily, inward, communion with God. No outward ceremonies can substitute for the inward reality of these experiences.”
A statement of Friends United Meeting…a good representation of how Friends look at baptism and other outward forms.
A statement of Friends United Meeting…a good representation of how Friends look at baptism and other outward forms.
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dougfreed
Guest
BAPTISM Definition
The word baptism is the English form of the Grk. baptismos. The verb from which this noun is derived-baptizo-is to mean “to dip, immerse.” )
John 3:5-8
5 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
(NIV)
The way scripture says is you must make a Conscience decision to follow Christ how can a baby make a Conscience decision to accept and follow Christ.
To me it means I have accepted Christ as my Lord ans Savior. I died of my old self and have been Born again as one of Gods children…
The word baptism is the English form of the Grk. baptismos. The verb from which this noun is derived-baptizo-is to mean “to dip, immerse.” )
John 3:5-8
5 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
(NIV)
The way scripture says is you must make a Conscience decision to follow Christ how can a baby make a Conscience decision to accept and follow Christ.
To me it means I have accepted Christ as my Lord ans Savior. I died of my old self and have been Born again as one of Gods children…
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ralphinal
Guest
And when a head of a household in Acts decided to have his (or her) whole house baptised, can we assume that the slaves and children consented or where they not present? Or, was scripture wrong when it says “the whole household was baptised?”
What did Jesus mean when he said “Let the little children come to me?” What did he mean by warning people not to interfear with it?
Historically, the Apostles held to infant baptism. Were they wrong?
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Wildgraywolf
Guest
Greetings Brother… You might want to recheck your definition of baptism.
As you said the word baptism comes from the Greek word baptismoß which means: a washing (purification) by means of water.
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Publisher
Guest
While I have no real stake in this discussion, since I have never undergone water baptism, Spirit only
…the apostles also engaged in Temple worship…and those apostles left in Jerusalem evidently continued to practice Jewish rituals including circumcision…we can see later in Acts where whether circumcision had become an issue…there is no “explicit” evidence that infant baptism was practiced. One can believe it is “implied” by the phrase of “household” and claim that if any children were in the household they would have been baptised…but it’s not explicitly stated as such.When the children came to Jesus they were not coming to him to be baptized…but to recieve a blessing and perhaps be presented to Jesus…and the apostles wanted to keep them away from him…there is nothing in this passage that implied baptism…so “suffer the little children to come to me…” had nothing to do with the act of water baptism.
Just an observation from the peanut gallery.
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ralphinal
Guest
First point well taken, it says neither one, so either is possible. Yes, the Jewish Christians did still follow Jewish laws, but how many of us are Jewish Christians today? We fall under the Gentile rules.While I have no real stake in this discussion, since I have never undergone water baptism, Spirit only
When the children came to Jesus they were not coming to him to be baptized…but to recieve a blessing and perhaps be presented to Jesus…and the apostles wanted to keep them away from him…there is nothing in this passage that implied baptism…so “suffer the little children to come to me…” had nothing to do with the act of water baptism.
Just an observation from the peanut gallery.
Jesus said you must be baptised. Not baptising them IS keeping them from his blessing.
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Publisher
Guest
In that case, I’m glad I’ve received baptism from his hands directly.
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ralphinal
Guest
That is a topic for another thread. Wait, that is a topic for this thread.In that case, I’m glad I’ve received baptism from his hands directly.
FOr a majority of Christians, baptism includes water. Why do Friends differ? When did they develop this doctrine? On what is it based?
I know, I am counting you guys as Christians. For sake of this discussion, you are.
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Publisher
Guest
It’s been the subjects of books but the short answer…Jesus came to abolish any ritual requirements of righteousness. We are all priests in Christ…we need no one to perform a rite on our behalf, we have direct access to God through the work of Christ…He alone is baptizer. Baptism has it’s roots in Jewish ritual. While water baptism isn’t bad in itself, for Friends it is an “outward form” that many trust in, in and of itself…water baptism doesn’t make a person New in Christ…but the regeneration of His Spirit…water baptism and other rituals sometimes casuses us to trust in the ritual to the exclusion of the Inward Reality…“one may enter the waters of baptism a dry sinner, and exit a wet sinner, but no one baptized with the Holy Spirt remains the same.”
No one ever again needs to act on our behalf in performing a ritual or sacrament on our behalf…He has done it all. Our lives become Living Sacraments of His regenerating Grace.
Friends see all rites and rituals that another would perform on our behalf as less than adequate for the immediate experiential Reality that those rites and rituals were trying to convey.
There is more to it than that…but that is the gist…the veil of the Temple was ripped open to reveal the Holy of Holies to the world ending all ritual requirements…He and He alone is our new Sanctuary…our new Holy of Holies…He and He alone is our Bread and Wine…He and He alone is our Baptizer…we are washed in His Spirit…immersed in His regenerating Power and Born not again of water, as we were in our natural birth, but born from above in the power and Life of His Spirit.
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GeorgiaPeach
Guest
1213 Holy Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life, the gateway to life in the Spirit (vitae spiritualis ianua), and the door which gives access to the other sacraments. Through Baptism we are freed from sin and reborn as sons of God; we become members of Christ, are incorporated into the Church and made sharers in her mission: “Baptism is the sacrament of regeneration through water in the word.” CCC
In the NT Baptism replaced circumcision (Col 2). Baptism is “the circumcision of Christ” and “the circumcision made without hands.” If you look at circumcision in the OT it was done to infants in celebration of being raised in the Jewish faith. The same can be said for infant Baptism…it is done in celebration of being raised as a Christian. In the case of infant baptism faith comes from the parents, godparents and the community of believers. It is their responsibility to develop and safeguard the grace given in Baptism.
Luke 18:15-16 People **were bringing even infants **to him that he might touch them, and when the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. Jesus, however, called the children to himself and said, "Let the children come to me and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.
While this doesn’t explicitly state baptism, the message can reasonably be applied to baptism. It commands that barriers not be placed that keep them from the kingdom of God.
Bottom line, there is no scripture that commands “only adults are to be baptized.”
Scripture says faith in Christ is necessary for salvation.
In the NT Baptism replaced circumcision (Col 2). Baptism is “the circumcision of Christ” and “the circumcision made without hands.” If you look at circumcision in the OT it was done to infants in celebration of being raised in the Jewish faith. The same can be said for infant Baptism…it is done in celebration of being raised as a Christian. In the case of infant baptism faith comes from the parents, godparents and the community of believers. It is their responsibility to develop and safeguard the grace given in Baptism.
Luke 18:15-16 People **were bringing even infants **to him that he might touch them, and when the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. Jesus, however, called the children to himself and said, "Let the children come to me and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.
While this doesn’t explicitly state baptism, the message can reasonably be applied to baptism. It commands that barriers not be placed that keep them from the kingdom of God.
Bottom line, there is no scripture that commands “only adults are to be baptized.”
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dougfreed
Guest
Where does scripture speak of infant baptism? Jesus does say bring them to learn from him.
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ralphinal
Guest
Jesus did say that you must be born again of water and the Spirit to enter heaven, and he gave to age limit to that.
Again, in Acts, it is possible, even likely, that slaves, servents, and children were baptised because the head of the house was.
Besides, just because it is not in the Bible does not mean it did not happen. No where in the Bible did Jesus or the Apostles go to the bathroom.
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notsmart
Guest
- I believe it to be just as in the bible, done by water with the words In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
- I will let you know when I finally can.
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TriuneUnity
Guest
Baptism replaces circumcision as the sign of the covenant (Col. 2). The sacrament of the Old Covenant was applied to infants (Gen 17). The New Covenant uses Baptism as this sacrament of the covenant (along with the Supper). If the new covenant is superior to the Old, and that there is a continuity within these two covenants, infants are included as part of the promises of the gospel.
“All nations” doesn’t discriminate on ethnicity, gender, or age.
Whole households were baptized in the apostolic era.
Baptism of infants has been documented as far as back as the early 2nd century.
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Steadfast
Guest
Infant faith anyone?
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